Why is market falling today? Sensex slumps over 700 points: 7 key factors behind Rs 3 lakh crore rout

Published 24 July 2026 · finance

The Indian stock market extended sharp losses for the fifth consecutive session, with Sensex and Nifty tumbling nearly 1% each on Friday morning as oil

The Indian stock market extended sharp losses for the fifth consecutive session, with Sensex and Nifty tumbling nearly 1% each on Friday morning as oil prices above $100 per barrel, FII selling and other factors spooked investors.Sensex tumbled over 800 points to the day's low of 75,513, while Nifty 50 fell below the 23,650 mark during Friday's trading session. The selloff today wiped off more than Rs 3 lakh crore from the total market capitalisation of all companies listed on BSE, dragging it down to Rs 473 lakh crore.All 30 constituents of Sensex traded in the red, with UltraTech Cement, IndiGo, Bharti Airtel, Eternal and others leading losses on the benchmark index, falling up to 2%. This came as India VIX, which measures volatility in the market, jumped more than 4% to 14.08.The broader markets also extended sharp losses, with Nifty Smallcap 100 and Nifty Midcap 100 indices trading lower. Sectorally, Nifty Auto, Nifty Metal and Nifty Realty, along with a few others, fell around 1% each. The overall market breadth was negative, with NSE seeing 1,847 advances and 673 declines, while 101 stocks remained unchanged.Here are the 7 key factors pushing the market down today: 1) Iran-US conflictThe US military announced on Thursday that it had completed a 13th consecutive night of strikes on Iran. Iran-aligned Houthis meanwhile said they had attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, while announcing that they were imposing a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia.The war between Iran and the US has seen significant escalations this week so far, spooking investors after a fragile ceasefire brought temporary respite to investors earlier.2) Oil prices riseOil prices soared above $100 per barrel for the first time since May after the Houthis said they attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.

These attacks sparked worries that the Bab el-Mandeb shipping route could be closed. This waterway connects the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean and is the world's second most important oil transit channel after the Strait of Hormuz, which also remains affected by the conflict.With oil prices soaring closer to the highs they hit earlier this year, Goldman Sachs warned that Brent crude could climb to $120 a barrel if disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important oil transit route, continue. Its base case remains that tensions in the Middle East will eventually ease.3) Rupee fallsRupee opened lower at 96.63 against the US dollar on Friday, compared to the previous close of 96.5725. As the Indian currency heads towards its lifetime low, the Reserve Bank of India likely intervened in the foreign exchange market today, Reuters reported.“Going forward, the rupee will continue to take direction from the US Dollar Index, crude oil prices, and FII flows, which remain key drivers for the domestic currency. Technically, the rupee is expected to trade in the 96.25–96.90 range in the near term,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst - Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities.4) FII sellingForeign investors remained net sellers of Indian equities on Thursday, offloading shares worth over Rs 2,999 crore, according to provisional data on NSE. After a long buying streak earlier this month, foreign investors have mostly been on a selling spree since mid-July.Persistent selling by foreign investors dampened sentiment on Dalal Street, which in turn can lead to some market downturn.5) Weak global cuesDalal Street is today accompanying global peers in the selloff. South Korea’s Kospi, which continues to remain in the bear market despite being the world’s best performing stock market of 2026, crashed another 6% to 6,678.Japan’s Nikkei tumbled 3%, while Taiwan Weighted plunged over 2%.